It is only those of unsound mind or beggars who does not need an invitation to gatecrash Usobs and partake in the feast although they are not allowed inside the gate. In fact, some even believe that the gods have come down to accept the offerings in the guise of beggars. Usually, an offering of the dish is first made beyond the gate for the governing sylvan deities before the feast of those invited begins. Another belief among the Meiteis is that, one attending such a traditional ceremony or function without an invitation specially in Shraddha ceremony would turn into a crow. So, there is a practice of personally calling upon the host to sent an invitation card.
In Manipur, rituals and ceremonies linked with the rites of passage are always a community affair and everyone joins in to play a part or contribute. Before the entry of printed invitation cards, the traditional practice was to leave a flower petal or betel nut with leaves in the courtyard. But, an apology for replacing the formal practice with a printed card is always added in the cards. Well, that is a thing of the past. Invitation through WhatsApp message is the latest fad even for Shraddha ceremonies except among the conservative folks. But then, there are some people who refused to attend ceremonies if their names are wrongly spelt in the invitation cards. But there are some people particularly politicians or aspiring candidates who makes it a point to attend each and every such ceremony whether they are invited or not. Or sometimes, they send their minions to collect invitation cards from the host family.
The issue of ‘invitation’ had come into mind, as the chief minister of Manipur keeps on saying that he would personally extend invitations to the 10 Kuki MLAs to the budget session of the Manipur Legislative Assembly beginning on July 31. This time, the session is going to be a bit longer than previous ones extending up to 12 August with nine business days. Twice, the 10 Kuki MLAs have skipped the Assembly sessions since the onset of violence and clashes in the state and this is going to be the third session in which their attendance is still uncertain. The reasons for their absence in the Assembly sessions is still debatable as to whether it was voluntary or being forced.
Among the 10 MLAs, some have sought leave of absence on grounds of health or otherwise while a few chose to do nothing. Well, two of them are ministers and are still functioning by way of e-office. Earlier when the CM claimed that he is in touch with the said MLAs they got together and vehemently denied it through joint statements. Most recently, CM Biren seems to have really met a few of the MLAs in Guwahati as Kuki CSOs began crying wolf and even identifying the ‘traitors’ on social media. Well, creating divisions and suspicion among them is part of the political game.
But one wonders why does one need to extend invitations personally or otherwise to attend Assembly sessions. Even though the media, both local and national, have made a big story out of it there is no need for invitations. When a session of the Assembly is being called, there is no need for ‘invitations’ as it is a public notification while attendance is mandatory. If any of the legislators is not in position to attend the session, he or she must seek ‘leave of absence’ from the House through the Speaker by giving reasons and it is for the House to grant the leave or not. So, talking about extending invitations would mean ignorance of the procedure of the House. A session is not something like a function or ceremony, where invitations are necessary.
The views expressed are personal)
